Earlier this week, Disney faced criticism from certain outlets over reports that they had put brown makeup on around 100 white extras for their upcoming live-action adaptation of Aladdin.

While the majority of their extras (400 out of 500) were of Indian, Middle Eastern, African, Mediterranean, and Asian descent, they still went for white background actors because — according to them — they couldn’t find non-white actors who specialized in such skills as stunts, dancing, and animal handling.

Needless to say, a lot of people weren’t too happy, and even actor Kal Penn — who is perhaps best known for his work on the Harold and Kumar film series — took to Twitter to chide the House of Mouse for their actions.

Here’s what he said in a tweet:

“I love @Disney so much. But when a PR person says they decided to put 100 people in Brownface in 2018 because not enough of us are qualified, that’s bs, someone just didn’t want to spend the $ to do it right. Let’s all expect more & do better this year.”

Of course, while Harold and Kumar may be his claim to fame, he’s also currently in the politically-charged series Designated Survivor. He also served in the Obama administration as an Associate Director in the White House Office of Public Engagement, among other roles.

One thing that’s great to see in his statement, is while he’s critical of Disney, he doesn’t necessarily shame them, and sees this as more of a learning experience to improve on in the future.

What do you think of Kal Penn’s statement? Let us know down below!

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Joseph Jammer Medina is an author, podcaster, and editor-in-chief of LRM. A graduate of Chapman University's Dodge College of Film and Television, Jammer's always had a craving for stories. From movies, television, and web content to books, anime, and manga, he's always been something of a story junkie.

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